The first band to play was Issues (7/10), a five-piece metal core band. Despite having only performed in London 3 times prior to their set supporting Sleeping with Sirens and Pierce the Veil on The World Tour, Issues knew how to handle the 2,300 capacity London crowd. Easily working the excitable young crowd into a frenzy, screaming back their lyrics with abandon. Mad At Myself was definitely a highlight, a room full of under-twenty’s screaming ‘I’m so mad at myself for giving in to what I want’ back to vocalist Tyler Carter who was gleefully pouncing the stage with powerful fellow vocalist Michael Bohn. Bass player Skyler Acord had the speed of someone possessed, and coupled with the energetic stage presence of the band, they were a great support to engage and excite the crowd whilst waiting for the headliners. If you’d like to see ‘metalcore with an influence of R&B’ and take part in a frantic mosh pit, I suggest you see Issues as soon as possible.
As both Sleeping With Sirens and Pierce The Veil alternate with who ends the show, in London Pierce The Veil (9/10) took to the stage second. They had a huge makeshift flag covering the stage with the female figure from the cover of their 2012 album Collide with the Sky, and as the lights behind the flag changed the crowd became increasingly more and more excited. The excitement in the room was tangible as the flag reflected the shadows of Pierce The Veil. The lights were flashing and the crowd were ready to have a good time and a good time they had.
From every angle, you could see fans screaming along having the time of their lives. It was a show that everyone including SWS and PTV had been waiting a long time for. Older songs off their previous albums such as Caraphernelia and Bulletproof Love reminded the audience why they were a fan of the band in the first place. The fans were singing louder than the band itself when Vic Fuentes did a solo rendition of I’m Low on Gas and You Need a Jacket and towards the end of the set, Fuentes chose an ecstatic lucky fan and brought her on stage for the first verse of Bulletproof love. This show really cemented why Pierce The Veil, along with Sleeping with Sirens, are currently two of the biggest names in post-hard core.
Sleeping With Sirens (9/10) were up next, the screams becoming louder as each member of the band entered the stage and became deafening when lead singer and poster boy Kellin Quinn came up to the mic. They opened their set with Kick Me off their newest release Madness and it was like the stage was made for Sleeping With Sirens as they confidently and impressively secured themselves as a must-see live band. With regular and frequent bursts of both confetti and pyro accompanied by the lights, the show had a great atmosphere and felt more like than arena show than the relatively medium sized venue it was in. For their last song, I found myself screaming along to If You Can’t Hang with 2 thousand and 300 hundred other people who looked like they were floating on cloud nine and having the time of their lives – and I certainly was!
